The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-10-02
THE PAWNBROKING BUSINESS.
What It Costs to Start in 1t and the Kind OF
Business That Is Preferred.

What It Costs to Start in 1t and the Kind of
Business That IL Preferred.
Brooklyn Standard-U Union.
A local pawnbroke says that it takes at least
S., 900 to start in the loan business, and that
more is necessary if the business is 10 be trans
acted an any but small scale. Its just the
same as any Other calling, said he he. To make
man is in the pawnbroking business the money
is going out all the while and mono is coming in.
You have no idea how much money is paid out
in year by man who docs a large.
fair, business. 1t takes a good deal Of money to
advance a couple of dollars this piece of
clothing Ave dollars on another, ten. fifteen or
twenty dollars on a watch, and from that mp to
fifty dollars on diamonds.
1.-THE goods we take differ with the sections OF
the city in which the pawn-brokers are located.
Where am, in South Brooklyn, the dealings
mostly in clothing and not very valuable
jewelry. If you take the pawn-shops off lower
Fulton street you will find that most of their
business is in expensive iewelry. and what they
do in clothing is with the best qualities. In one
respect we would rather take valuable articles;
that is. we put ont certain sum of money in
single instance that would be sufficient for
dozen small loans. The interest is the same in
both cases, while'there is less trouble and work,
of course, with the single transaction than with
the dozen. But there is also reason why we
had rather take the goods of lesser value. and it
is that they always redeemed, while the
more expensive ones are frequently left on our
hands"
Don't you realize considerablein excess Of
your regular charge by the sale of goods that
are unc1almedF
NO. We do not. That is prevalent mistake.
We are always satisfied il we get back our adj
vances and the interest We would have charged
The articles Of small value generally consist of
clothing of poor people who pledge them TO
raise money to pay rent or buy food AS
they get little money they redeem them. and
get back the advance and The interest.
That's the kind OF business we prefer TO do
Some folks think it is the Door people who sup
port the pawn brokers, but it isn't think peo-
pie of means get more money from pawnbrokers
in a year and pey them more than the poorer
ones. When say people of means. mean
those who have certainty of so
quarter. They spend ell their cash, can't draw
any until the next payment is due. so they bring
or send their fine clothing and jewelry. redeem
ing it vhen they get money. There some
women with whom pawning seems to be a mania,
and when a woman reaches that point she is
good deal worse than any man. 1t would sur-
prise some of the good people of Brooklyn il
women who pawn their property. / know
woman whose husband is called out OF town oc-
cas.onally for a few days at q time. and it has
frequently happened while he away that
she would pledge her wedding ring. If she could
borrow money before he returned she would re-
directly when he came back and get the ring
before he missed it.
I'VE have to examine everything we take
pretty closely. amt especially jewelry. There
who make business Of swndling
pawnbrokers, and they resort to every trick they
gold chains and ringe thai are made of some
new kind of composition that will not turn black
when the acid test 10 applied. / came very near
being caught on 1t q couple of weeks ago. and
several others did give money on articles made
of the same material"